音色
ねいろ · neiro · JLPT N1 · noun
color
🎻 音色 = 音 (sound) + 色 (color): the color of a sound, which tells a violin from a flute
音 means sound and 色 means color, so 音色 is the color of a sound. It is what lets you tell a violin from a flute playing the same note.
色 — person 人 (top) + kneeling figure 卩 (bottom)
Originally a pictograph showing one person above another, traditionally interpreted as depicting facial expressions or intimate posture between two people. The earliest meaning was 'facial expression' or 'countenance,' which extended to 'appearance' and eventually 'color' (the look of things). The 'shǎi' reading is a colloquial variant used for everyday color words.